


A First Time For Everything

by rozabellalove



Category: Leverage
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-26
Updated: 2012-11-26
Packaged: 2017-11-19 15:18:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,478
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/574721
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rozabellalove/pseuds/rozabellalove
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Parker is prepped and ready for her all-important third date with Hardison. She’s not quite sure why the third date is supposed to be so important, but apparently it is. Except Hardison hasn’t quite got the memo.</p>
            </blockquote>





	A First Time For Everything

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: Written for mystizan (LJ user) who requested this once or twice (ever so gently and without any persistent reminders at all…). She wanted a clueless Parker, who’s had no experience of a real relationship and how those you love are there for you even when you think it’s all fallen to pieces around you.

Parker was never one for taking long showers. She was generally in and out in under ten minutes, usually forgetting to rinse off her conditioner or leaving blobs of shaving foam in patches all over her legs. She’d known Sophie to take two or three hours in the bathroom, and she’d never really understood what on earth the grifter could be doing in there. 

The night of her third date with Hardison, Parker spent over half an hour in the bath. Sophie had recommended a salon where she could get a full leg and bikini wax - something of a revelation for Parker, who’d always believed that a razor was her best friend. Although she’d had to apologize to the nice lady afterwards, apparently it wasn’t polite etiquette to threaten to kill the woman every time she ripped off a strip. Another salon had cut and styled the hair she usually just tied back to let it dry naturally. The manicure and pedicure had almost sent her off to sleep, apart from when they accidentally tickled her toes and she’d kicked the poor girl in the jaw. She’d left a really big tip, though. Probably more than she should have, but she had been feeling bad about the girl’s face. And her stash of wonderful money wasn’t going anywhere, since she was the only thief in the state that could break into the secret vault where she kept it in lusciously plump piles. 

The dress was her own, although she’d still made Sophie come with her to choose it. The dresses Sophie lent her for their jobs were just too short and grifterly to work for this night. Tonight she wanted to feel feminine and show off her assets without exactly shoving them in Hardison‘s face. Sophie helped her pick a more floaty number. Pale blue, summery but longer than she usually wore, with a hint of lace at the hem and on the neckline. It made her pale skin look almost tanned, her legs slim but shapely, and the dipped neckline gave her a hint of cleavage that was wholesome but not slutty. Or at least that was what Sophie said about it. Parker just knew it looked good and it felt nice to wear.

As a concession to normality, she’d even splashed out a little more and made her place cosier by putting in a sofa and TV. There was still no kitchen. Parker would never have used it anyway, she lived off sugar-packed cereal and adrenaline. What use would she have for an oven? Instead Eliot was bringing over some freshly prepared pasta concoction that she would no doubt fall in love with. Sometimes she wondered whether spending all of her time with the team was healthy for her, it was changing her in ways she would never have imagined possible, before. All the same, she had to admit that Eliot’s cooking was something she’d have a hard time learning to live without.

The place was perfectly clean and tidy, if a little bare, but with the new dimmer lighting she’d had installed you could almost imagine it was just a big apartment, not an abandoned warehouse. She‘d even had wood flooring installed to cover the bare concrete; it was as cosy as she could make it without losing everything she liked about the place. Hardison was coming over at seven, so at six fifty-five she bundled Eliot out of the back entrance. He was still trying to give her instructions on the right way to stir the sauce into the pasta, but she didn’t have time to hear about the very **distinctive** way the Italian chefs do it, or why counter-clockwise was so much better than clockwise. She had to get rid of him so Hardison wouldn’t suspect anything. Although knowing him, Hardison would have to have it spelled out in fifty-foot-high letters.

He was only ten minutes late, but she was already on edge, nervous energy coming out in little twitches and off-key humming. For a minute she considered putting in her earbud and letting Sophie guide her through the niceties of her first ever ‘staying in’ date, but she wanted them to have privacy, and she knew Hardison would recognize her little head-tilt as she listened to Sophie’s instructions; he was still trying to train her out of it.

When he finally walked in, she was fretting over the food.

“Hey, girl, sorry I’m late,” he tried to kiss her on the cheek, but she pulled back and glared at him.

“Where were you? The food’s cold, and I forgot whether it was clockwise or counter-clockwise!” Her voice sounded plaintive even to her own ears.

“What? Clockwise or -” 

He looked flustered, as if he’d been in a rush to get there. She caught sight of the huge bag he was carrying and wondered whether he’d stopped off to get her a present. Maybe some of those new bolt-cutters she’d been admiring at the hardware store the other day. She took a breath and began to relax, remembering that it wasn’t the cold food that was important, it was spending time with him.

“Never mind.” She took his hand and pulled him behind her, towing him to the couch. “You sit down and enjoy these little snacky things.” Eliot had unwrapped the tray just before he left. He had tried to tell her what was in them, but all she heard was ‘a sprinkling of Parsley’ and ‘not too tart’, she’d given up on understanding the mysteries of good food a long time ago, but Eliot had yet to realize that.

She left Hardison on the couch and went back to the surface where she’d left the pasta. Luckily it wasn’t too cold, and the sauce was still piping hot. She gave up on trying to remember Eliot’s special stirring method and just piled on the sauce, stirring until it looked mixed through. She dished up two heaped bowls and headed over to the couch.

The snacky things - Eliot had a fancy name for them, it sounded foreign, like ‘moose booch’ or something - were untouched, and Hardison was on his knees behind the brand-new TV set, fiddling with something.

“Ahem.” She was still a little testy from earlier, “The food’s ready.” 

“Oh.” He poked his head out from behind the screen. “Can you pass me that bag? I brought you a little something.”

She set the bowls down on her new coffee table and smiled. He had thought of her after all. She couldn’t wait to try out her new bolt-cutters on the state-of-the-art padlocks she’d lifted from their last job. The bag was heavier than she’d expected, but then maybe he had other surprises in there for her too. She swung it over to him and sat expectantly on the sofa. Her dress brushed against her smooth, bare legs, and she realized he hadn’t said anything about how she looked. Normally she wouldn’t have noticed, but she remembered the way Eliot’s eyes had lingered on her and swept down all the way to her toes when he’d walked in with the food. She thought of the way Sophie’s eyes had widened and she’d cooed with pleasure when Parker walked out of the changing room, swishing the skirt around her knees. Even Nate had given her a distracted “Very nice,” when she’d showed it to him - high praise from the mastermind. 

Hardison’s grin as he opened the bag made her worries fade, she knew he cared. There was no reason to feel this worked up over such silly little things. He delved into the bag. “Are you ready? Girl, this is gonna blow your mind!”

She nodded and leaned forward, “Yes! Come on, show me.”

“Ta-dah!” He pulled a large, sleek, black box out of the bag, “Only the latest in surround sound technology. It’s gonna sound real good in here, with the acoustics in this place. Got it half-off at…” He carried on talking, but she wasn’t listening. She sat back slowly and let him get on with it.

She picked at the cool pasta with disinterest. It was delicious, but she didn’t feel like eating it. Hardison’s bowl was untouched, he was on his back now, half underneath the TV stand, and there were bits of cardboard strewn all over her brand-new floor. She tucked her feet up under her and rested her head on the heel of her hand, resigned to the fact that this night was not going to go the way she’d planned.

***

Hardison finished wiring up the new sound system and slid the speakers into place. They were small and gently curved, powerful but a million miles from the huge ones that dwarfed his living room, they had cost an arm and a leg. He’d chosen them carefully with her in mind. She wouldn’t want something clunky that took up too much space. He knew she’d had some work done on the place recently, and the speakers were his housewarming present to her. She wasn’t really a girly girl, so a plant or a photo-frame would have just gained him a vague smile before being put aside and never seen again. This way she got something useful, the TV alone in the huge space would not be enough to give a good sound.

He swept the packaging into a rough pile and sat up, beaming at her. “Shall we try this baby out?” She just shrugged and tossed him the TV remote. She looked a little distant, but not quite at full-blown explosion stage. He figured she’d cheer up when he got the DVD on and she heard the amazing new sound system working. He slid the DVD into the tray and back up to the sofa. Parker was squeezed into one corner of it, leaving plenty of room for him to stretch out. 

The opening production credits of ’Thor’ started with a blast that made him smile but just made Parker jump with shock. “Good sound, huh?” He grinned, still focusing on getting the settings right, pressing the buttons on the new remote quickly, scrolling through the various options. Eventually he got it right and leaned back to cuddle up with her and watch the film.

For a second he thought it was a bit odd that she was squished up into one corner of the sofa, she usually liked to sit close to him and sprawl over him, all clumsy arms and legs tangled with his own. Her arms were folded now, too. He thought maybe she was cold, the dress she was wearing was pretty but flimsy. Tentatively, he let a hand slide onto the sliver of bare leg he could reach. Her skin was cool, and she shivered a little.

“Girl, why you wearing such a thin dress, huh? You don’t have to impress me. I’d like you even in sweatpants.” He smiled at her, hoping she knew that whatever she looked like he didn’t care. He was falling deeper and deeper in love with her, and nothing was going to catch him now. It wasn’t like him to leap without a net, but when it came to Parker he had realized he’d been going over the edge since the moment they met. There was no harness to slow his fall, and he only hoped she was right there beside him as he hurtled towards whatever the future had in store for them.

She was properly shaking now, but Hardison knew her well enough to suddenly understand that this was not from being cold. Her lips were a thin, angry line, and her jaw was set as she got up and whirled on him. “I threatened to kill a nice little Thai lady this week. I kicked a girl in the face and she had to re-do that foot. I spent _seven whole hours_ shopping with Sophie. Seven! And…and you didn’t even…you wouldn’t say…you brought me a set of _speakers_!”

She was standing in front of him with her fists clenched at her sides, and worse than that, she was crying. He wondered whether she even knew she was doing it, because she wasn’t wiping away the tears. He stood up quickly and reached for her, but she pulled away before he could wrap his arms around her and calm her down.

“Parker, what’s going on? I don’t-”

She kept walking backwards, slowly but deliberately. “You ruined it, Alec. You ruined it all.”

He knew it was bad, she never called him Alec. Before he could catch up to her, she bolted. Long, graceful legs carrying her further and faster than he could match. He heard a window catch going and slumped back onto the sofa, hands on his knees. Alone and miserable.

Eliot’s ringtone - Eye of the Tiger - came up on his cell phone and he flipped it open, holding it to his ear without saying anything. “Dammit, Hardison!”

“Where is she?” He closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead with his free hand.

“I don’t know. She just flew past me on my way home. What the hell did you do?” Eliot’s voice betrayed that he was worried more than angry, but it was a close call.

“I honestly have no freakin’ idea.” He flopped back onto the sofa and looked around. She was gone, and she wouldn’t appreciate him still being here when she got back. He tidied up the packaging and left the new bolt-cutters he’d bought on her coffee table. They were wrapped with a soft blue ribbon. He’d planned to give them to her after the film, when she wouldn’t be expecting them. This way maybe she’d see them when she got home and forgive him for whatever it was he’d done.

***

Parker sat on a rooftop until the whipping winds had calmed her enough that she could go back home. She’d had time to think about what had happened and to start to see it from Hardison’s point of view. She was still pretty mad, but it was slowly starting to dawn on her that Hardison’s gesture had been kind of sweet, in a very geeky way. She swung off the ledge and climbed down to ground level without any safety ropes or harnesses. The team would have given her hell for it, but it was her favorite thing to do, although it was a little harder in her date night heels.

Hardison had locked the door, but she had a hundred secret entrances to her place, not to mention a couple of bobby pins in her hair if she‘d actually needed them. She was in within seconds, slipping off her heels and collapsing onto her bed. She could see the couch and the TV with the new sound system all hooked up. It was actually kind of pretty, as technology went. The speakers were a soft grey instead of black, and they were curved, almost feminine looking. She sighed. He’d made an effort after all. 

There was something on the table; she’d walked straight past it without wanting to look at the place where they’d fought earlier. All she could see at first was a satiny blue ribbon, tied in a bow. Edging closer - she was always suspicious of anything pretty left lying around - she caught sight of the long, slim handles and gasped. Hardison had left her the new bolt-cutters she wanted. She smiled and picked them up reverently, testing the sharpness of the new alloy blades with her thumb. 

They were beautiful, and super sharp. She picked out one of the new padlocks and braced it against the table, the bolt-cutters sliced through the metal quickly and cleanly. She turned them over in her hands and something caught her eye. One of the smooth, metal handles was engraved with a message - _For Parker, remember, I got you. Love Hardison_.

For the second time that night she felt tears spill hot onto her cheeks. He’d been trying to do something nice for her and she’d driven him away. She curled up into a ball on the sofa, snuggling the bolt-cutters close to her chest. It was too late to call him, and she didn’t know what she would say anyway, even if she could get through to him. The soft, blue ribbon still held a hint of Hardison’s smell, and she fell asleep holding it.

***

Parker woke in the early hours of the morning still on the couch. There was ain indentation in her cheek from the tips of the bolt-cutters, and her fingers were stiff from clutching the ribbon too tightly. She showered off quickly and slipped into some normal clothes. Her earbud slid in easily, and after a second she couldn’t feel it anymore, but the comms were quiet this early, and although she wanted to hear Hardison’s voice, all she could hear was the quiet sound of Eliot’s breathing as he took his morning jog.

She sighed, and Eliot responded quickly, “Parker, that you?”

“Uh-huh.” She nodded, even though he couldn’t see her.

“What happened last night? You two get in a fight?” Eliot was breathing deeply now, as if cooling down. 

“I guess. I - I’m not sure. El. Does he hate me now?” Her voice was quiet and she clenched her eyes tightly shut, as if she could somehow block out the ‘yes’ that she knew was coming.

“What? Parker,” Eliot was almost growling, “you need to tell me right now what the hell went on last night. Do I need to kick his ass?” She could practically hear the anger rising in him.

“No! No. It was my fault. I messed up.” She closed the door behind her and made her way out into the street, feet pointed in the direction of McRory’s.

“He must have done something, though. Uh, did you apologize?” Eliot’s voice was gentler now.

“Not yet. I figured he wouldn’t want to speak to me. It was bad, El. I think I ruined it all.” She felt a lump form in her throat and it suddenly hit her. It was over. He hadn’t called her, he wasn’t on comms. He must have told Eliot something because Eliot had known something was wrong. Three dates and she’d lost it all, before it had even had a chance to grow, before she’d got to tell him how she felt.

“Parker,” Eliot soothed, “just come to Nate’s, we’ll work it out.”

***

Hardison had spent a restless night at home, watching his phone and checking his emails every five minutes. She hadn’t called, or sent him a text or email. He couldn’t bring himself to get on the comms and listen to her tell everyone what an idiot he’d been. Eliot had already given him enough shit last night for it. Nate probably wouldn’t care too much, but Sophie would definitely have something to say.

He sent a quick message to Nate saying he had stuff to take care of and wouldn’t be there until later, then curled back up in bed, waiting for her to call.

***

Sophie was making coffee for Nate, whose shadowy eyes and shaky hands spoke of a raging hangover, when Parker walked in without saying a word. Sophie took one look at Parker and abandoned the coffee maker, telling Nate to do it himself when he complained.

“What is it, Parker? Did something go wrong last night?” She looked concerned, her hand rested lightly on Parker’s arm, a warm, calming presence.

Parker nodded silently. Afraid to speak in case the tears came on again. She’d taken a long time to train herself out of crying when she was young, but now that the floodgates had opened she was finding it hard to hold the tears back. 

“What did he do?” Sophie was beginning to look angry, somehow assuming this was all Hardison’s fault. 

“Nothing, really. He - he was just being Hardison, you know?” Her voice was thick with the tears she was holding onto. Sophie nodded and waited for her to carry on. “He was a bit late, but only ten minutes or so. And he, umm, he didn’t notice that I tried so hard. You know? He didn’t _see_ me. He just went straight for the TV and started fiddling around there. He said he’d got me a gift and I was so excited, and it… it was a surround sound system.”

“A surround sound system?” Sophie frowned, “Why on earth would you want one of those? And he didn’t notice your pretty dress?”

Parker shook her head. “But it was my fault, Sophie. I was mad because the food was going cold and I was all flustered about it and nervous about having a boy over at my place and it all went wrong and I got angry and… I scared him away and now he doesn’t want me anymore!” Her voice broke on the last few words and she sobbed again. 

“Whoa, whoa, Parker,” Sophie wrapped both arms around her and steered her to a stool at the kitchen counter. “What do you mean he doesn’t want you anymore? Why wouldn’t he want you? It’s just a fight, it’s _normal_.” Sophie tanned fingers brushed a rogue lock of blonde hair from Parker’s eyes.

Now she’d let the dam break, Parker’s sobs were in full force, and her voice was squeakily unintelligible, “And…he…bolt-cutters…left for…on…table…present…I was…so mean…”

The door slammed as Eliot stormed into the apartment. Nate gave him a look that said ‘don’t even bother, women stuff’ and poured a generous dash of whiskey into his coffee, before turning to the morning papers.

“Where is he? What did he do?” Eliot’s voice was low and dangerous; he looked ready to hurt someone.

Parker’s sobs were subsiding now, “No, I told you, it was me. I messed it all up.” She put her head in her hands and let Sophie relay everything to Eliot, at least as much as she had gathered before Parker broke down.

“…and then it turned out he’d actually bought her the bolt cutters after all.”

“Oh.” Eliot nodded, shoulders relaxing as he realized he didn’t have to kick Hardison’s ass after all. “Have you called him?”

She shook her head, “He won’t want to speak to me. He would have called if he did. He thinks I‘m crazy, doesn‘t he? I just can‘t believe it‘s over already, and it was just getting good.”

“Over?” Sophie grabbed Parker’s hands tightly in both of her own, “Why on earth would you think that, Parker?”

Eliot gave her a small grin and shook his head at her, “You don’t get it, do you? He thinks you don’t want to see him. Thinks that’s why you ran away. He’s waiting for you to call him.”

“Really?” She looked at the two of them.

Sophie nodded, “Yes, Parker. He knows you wanted space last night and he’s giving it to you, waiting for you to calm down.”

“So, it’s not…over? I don‘t have to change cities, and start over somewhere else? I don‘t have to leave you guys?”

“No!” Sophie laughed a little. “No, silly. What you both have, it’s not something you can just get rid of with one little fight, Parker. You’ll talk to each other. You’ll tell him how you felt and what he did wrong, and you’ll both apologize. After that, well I’ll leave you two to figure that bit out, but for now if you don’t call Hardison then I will.”

Eliot crossed his arms and nodded, “She’s right. Just call him, trust us.”

She took a deep breath and reached for her cell phone, hoping that her friends were right.

***

At first the ringtone just registered as an annoying sound, buzzing through the haze of Hardison’s fitful sleep. As he slowly came round, though, he realized it was a call coming through. He fumbled for the phone and managed to catch the call just in time.

“Parker, I’m sorry,” he clutched the phone desperately, “whatever I did - and I know I should know what it was, but I-”

“No, it was my fault, Hardison. _I’m_ sorry.” She cut him off before he could tell her how bad he was feeling about the whole thing. Her voice was rough and quiet. “Can we-”

“Whatever you want. Anything you want. Just tell me we’re ok.”

He waited for what seemed like a lifetime to hear her reply, and when she finally spoke he could hear the smile that lit up her face, “We’re ok.” There was noise in the background and it sounded like she was walking somewhere.

He grinned and let out a small sigh of relief. “Thank God. I never want to hurt you Parker. You know that, right?”

“I know.” She whispered, and although he couldn’t see her, he knew she was nodding.

“Can we try that date again? Maybe at my place this time?” 

“Already on it.” She sounded much happier, but a little out of breath. He was about to ask her where she was when there was a tap at the window. He looked up and saw her, balanced precariously on his window ledge, blonde hair whipping around her face, cheeks pink from the wind. The phone dropped from his hand and he rushed to the window to pull her inside. Her skin was cold against his own but he wasn’t about to let her go. He could feel her smiling against his neck as she wrapped her body around him and let him carry her to the bed.

He laid her down and kissed her over and over until he had to come up for air. “This time I’m ordering in, I’m keeping you close, and you are not leaving until I am one hundred percent satisfied that you know exactly how much you mean to me. Got it?”

She laughed and pulled him down again, “In that case I want a huge pizza with everything on it, and you’re paying.”

He let her roll them over so she was half on top of him, her head resting in the crook of his shoulder, one arm and one leg slung across him. “Hmmm, I don‘t know about that…” She frowned and he laughed at her pathetic attempt to look stern. “Oh ok. Deal.”

***

Sophie and Eliot pulled out their earbuds.

“I think we can leave them to it now.” She smiled. They’d survived their first fight, small as it was, and there would probably be plenty more to go. The important thing was that they were still together and both learning to trust each other. Now if only she could get Eliot fixed up with a nice girl, get Nate off the sauce, and get her hands on those gorgeous Jimmy Choos she’d seen this week, her life would be complete.


End file.
